Engineering:Tachikawa Ki-55

From HandWiki
Short description: Japanese military trainer aircraft
Ki-55
General information
ManufacturerTachikawa Aircraft Company
Management and usageImperial Japanese Army Air Force
Royal Thai Air Force
Number built1,389
History
Manufactured1940 - 1943
First flightSeptember 1939
Retired1945 (Japan)
1953 (China)
Developed fromTachikawa Ki-36

The Tachikawa Ki-55 (Allied reporting name Ida) is a Japanese advanced trainer.

Design and development

The excellent characteristics of the Tachikawa Ki-36 made it potentially ideal as a trainer. This led to the development of the Ki-55. The main differences were the installation of dual controls for the instructor at the rear seat. Unnecessary equipment was removed, such as armament, radio and radio mast, bomb racks and the fuselage side observation windows. The wheel spats would often be removed as well, but not always.

After successful testing of a prototype in September 1939, the type was put into production as the Tachikawa Army Type 99 Advanced Trainer.

In all, 1,389 Ki-55 were constructed before production ended in December 1943 - with Tachikawa having built 1078 and Kawasaki 311.[1]

Both the Ki-55 and the Ki-36 were given the Allied nickname Ida.

Operators

Tachikawa Ki-55 trainer at the Royal Thai Air Force Museum
A 1948 Indonesian stamp featuring Ki-55
 Japan
  • Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
  • Kumagaya Army Flying School
  • Mito Army Flying School
  • Tachiarai Army Flying School
  • Utsonomiya Army Flying School
 Manchukuo
  • Manchukuo Air Force
Reorganized National Government of China
  • National Government of China Air Force received several from the Japanese.
 Republic of China
  • Republic of China Air Force operated captured aircraft.
 People's Republic of China
  • People's Liberation Army Air Force operated more than 30 captured aircraft at the end of 1945. These Ki-55s were used until the last 14 retired in 1953.
 Indonesia
  • Indonesian Air Force (then called Indonesian People's Security Force)[2]
 Thailand
  • Royal Thai Air Force purchased 24 machines in 1942 and operated them under the designation B.F.6 (Thai: บ.ฝ.๖).[3] These aircraft were in service until 1950.

Francillon also mentions delivery to the Japanese satellite air force of Cochinchina, the southernmost third part of present Vietnam[4]

Surviving aircraft

Two aircraft have survived.

  • A Ki-55 is on display at the Royal Thai Air Force Museum in Bangkok, Thailand.
  • A Ki-55, numbered 103, is on display at the Military Museum of the Chinese People's Revolution in Beijing, China.

Specifications (Ki-55)

3-view drawing of the Tachikawa Ki-55

Data from Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War[5]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 8 m (26 ft 3 in)
  • Wingspan: 11.8 m (38 ft 9 in)
  • Height: 3.64 m (11 ft 11 in)
  • Wing area: 20 m2 (220 sq ft)
  • Airfoil: root: NACA 23014; tip: NACA 23006[6]
  • Empty weight: 1,292 kg (2,848 lb)
  • Gross weight: 1,721 kg (3,794 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Hitachi Ha13a (Army Type 98 450hp Air Cooled Radial) 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine, 380 kW (510 hp) for take-off
350 kW (470 hp) at 1,700 m (5,600 ft)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed metal propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 349 km/h (217 mph, 188 kn) at 2,200 m (7,200 ft)
  • Cruise speed: 235 km/h (146 mph, 127 kn)
  • Range: 1,060 km (660 mi, 570 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 8,200 m (26,900 ft)
  • Time to altitude: 3,000 m (9,800 ft) in 6 minutes 55 seconds
  • Wing loading: 86.1 kg/m2 (17.6 lb/sq ft)
  • Power/mass: 0.222 kW/kg (0.135 hp/lb)

See also

Related development

Related lists

References

  1. ↑ Francillon 1979, p. 254.
  2. ↑ Heyman, Jos (November 2005). "Indonesian aviation 1945-1950". adf-serials.com. p. 8. http://nei.adf-serials.com/indonesian-aviation-1945-50.pdf. 
  3. ↑ "Thai Military Aircraft Designations". https://designation-systems.net/non-us/thailand.html. 
  4. ↑ Francillon 1979, p. 252.
  5. ↑ Francillon 1979, p. 253.
  6. ↑ Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html. 

Bibliography

  • Eleftheriou, George (2010). Arawasi Eagle Eye Series, No. 1. Tokyo: Arawasi. ISBN 978-4-9904647-0-7. 
  • Francillon, René J. (1979). Japanese aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam. ISBN 0-370-30251-6. OCLC 6124909.  (new edition 1987 by Putnam Aeronautical Books, ISBN 0-85177-801-1); 3rd edition 1987, Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-85177-801-1.)
  • Green, William; Swanborough, Gordon (n.d.). "Pentagon Over the Islands: The Thirty-Year History of Indonesian Military Aviation". Air Enthusiast Quarterly (2): 154–162. ISSN 0143-5450. 

Template:Tachikawa aircraft Template:Japanese Army Aircraft Designation System



Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Engineering:Tachikawa_Ki-55&oldid=4285980"